The present invention relates to a frame module for an improved weaving device.
Weaving devices, commonly called looms, are known in the art and have been in existence in one or another form for thousands of years. Weaving devices are generally used for producing woven fabric. Generally speaking, weaving devices consist of a frame, a substantially horizontal array of eyelets movably supported by the frame between an upper position and a lower position, and a mechanism for moving the eyelets between the two positions.
To set up a typical weaving device for operation, a thread, or any type of weavable strand, is drawn off a spool and passed through an eyelet of the weaving device, then passed through a guide which is on the opposite side of the eyelet from the spool. The guide may be in the form of a long horizontal slot, or a gap between two horizontal, vertically opposed rollers for example. Each eyelet is threaded in this manner with an individual thread.
Selected eyelets are oriented in the upper position and slightly above the guide, while the remaining eyelets are oriented in the lower position and slightly below the guide. This difference in the relative positions of the eyelets with respect to each other and to the guide, causes the threads to form an upper and lower row of parallel threads. The upper row passes from the upper eyelets to the guide, and the lower row passes from the lower eyelets to the guide. The two rows intersect, or meet, at the guide to form an acute interior corner or angle. This formation of two rows of threads is generally called a shed. Thus, a shed can basically be described as two flat planes, each formed by a row of parallel threads, which meet to form a trough, or corner.
To begin the weaving process a cross-thread, called a weft thread, is placed into the corner of the shed where the threads meet at the guide, and perpendicular to the warp threads. After placement of the weft thread, the position of each eyelet is reversed, that is, the upper eyelets move to the lower position, and the lower eyelets move to the upper position. This change in position of the eyelets not only forms another shed, but also causes the warp threads to partially wrap around the weft thread. A second weft thread is then inserted into the corner of the new shed, and the position of each eyelet is again reversed. This process is continually repeated to form a fabric created from interlacing, or weaving, the warp and weft threads.
Basic woven fabric is produced on weaving devices which move the respective eyelets in a continuously repeating sequence of shed changes to produce a substantially homogeneous fabric pattern. However, a special type of weaving device, called a Jacquard device, may be used, for among other purposes, to weave intricate or varying patterns into the fabric, or to perform seaming operations in which the opposite edges of a piece of fabric are woven together to form an endless ribbon or belt of fabric. Jacquard devices are well known in the art and have been in existence for hundreds of years in various forms. In a Jacquard device, each eyelet is individually selectively movable with respect to each of the shed changes. In other words, the sequence of movements of the eyelets is not merely uniformly repetitive, but may be selectively variable with each shed change. In this manner, varying and stylistically appealing patterns may be woven into the fabric by the weaving device.
Generally speaking, a Jacquard weaving device consists of an array of springs mounted on the top of the frame of the weaving device. An eyelet is attached to each of the springs and depends from the lower end of the spring. The respective springs bias the eyelets toward an upper position. A pulley block is attached to the lower side of each eyelet and depends below the eyelet. A cord is fed or otherwise received through the pulley block and engages the sheave, or pulley wheel of same. The opposite ends of the cord depend from the pulley block. The cord has two hooks attached to it, one on each end.
Attached to the frame, are griff bars which reciprocally move up and down below the pulley block. The griff bars are mechanically linked together so that, as one griff bar moves up, the other correspondingly moves down, and vice versa. An actuator such as an electrical motor is coupled to one of the griff bars to reciprocally move the griff bars at continuously selective and repeating intervals.
The hooks slidably engage guides which are mounted on the frame. The respective guides restrict and direct the path of movement of the hooks such that the path of movement of one of the hooks substantially coincides with one of the griff bars, and the path of movement of the other hook substantially coincides with the other griff bar. Each hook has a slot formed therein which is engaged by the respective griff bar as it moves downwardly. If the hook is held in its lowermost position, the slot formed on the hook allows the griff bar to disengage from the hook and move upwardly while leaving the hook in its lower position.
The cord which extends between the respective hooks is of such a length that the individual springs, located above each of the eyelets, keeps the cord taut at all times. When both hooks are engaged by the respective griff bars, the hooks and cord travel in a seemingly see-saw like motion along with the griff bars. During this motion the cord is pulled back and forth through the pulley block and rollingly engages the sheave. Also during this pattern of motion, the pulley block and eyelet remain substantially stationary (in the upper position) being held in the same position by the tension of the spring.
In these weaving devices the lower end of each hook is engageable by means of a latch which is mounted on the frame and which is located near the bottom of the path of travel of each of the hooks. Each latch selectively captures and retains the respective hook in the lower position. If one of the hooks is held in its lower position by the respective latch, the associated griff bar disengages from the hook as it travels upwardly, leaving the hook retained by the latch in the lower position. As the griff bar moves upwardly, leaving the associated hook retained by the latch, the other hook (attached to the opposite end of the cord) is simultaneously pulled downwardly toward another latch by the other griff bar. Because the first hook is latched in the lower position, and is not allowed to travel upwardly while the other hook is being pulled downwardly, the pulley block is simultaneously pulled downwardly by the cord attached between the hooks. This action, of course, pulls the eyelet downwardly against the upwardly biasing force of the spring attached to same. This results in the eyelet reaching a lowermost position as both hooks reach their respective lowermost positions.
For the eyelet to remain in the lower position, both the first and second hooks must be retained in their respective lowermost positions by their respective latches. In this manner, the individual griff bars continue to reciprocally move in a see-saw like motion above both hooks, but do not cause movement of the hooks, cord, pulley block, or eyelet. Conversely, for the eyelet to move to its upper position once again, one of the latches must disengage from one of the hooks as the associated griff bar is located in the lowermost position. In this manner, one of the hooks is released by the latch and allowed to travel upwardly with the griff bar to its upper position under the influence of the spring. This action results in the respective pulley block and eyelet moving upwardly to the original upper position. For the eyelet to remain in the upper position, the other latch must also release its respective hook, allowing the see-saw like motion of the hooks and cord to resume as initially described.
Many Jacquard weaving devices utilize electric solenoids to effect the selective retention of the hooks by the latches. In this type of design, an electric solenoid is mounted on the frame near each of the respective latches. Mounted on each latch is a material which can be magnetically influenced, or attracted, such as iron, when the solenoid is energized with electrical current. Generally, each latch is biased into a first, or latched, position. During operation, as a hook is moved into engagement with the respective latch, the hook pushes the latch into a second, or unlatched position, and in the direction of the solenoid such that the magnetically attractable material is pressed against or moved closely adjacent to the solenoid. In the situation where the solenoid is energized, the material is strongly attracted to the solenoid by the magnetic field. This in turn holds the latch in the unlatched position which prevents the latch from capturing and retaining the hook in the lowermost position as the hook moves upwardly and away from the respective latch.
On the other hand, if the solenoid is not energized, the bias of the latch causes the latch to move back to the latched position as the hook begins to move upwardly. In this scenario, before the hook completely disengages from the latch, the latch captures the hook, thereby retaining it in the lowermost position. If the hook is retained by the latch, the griff bar will disengage from the hook and continue moving upwardly while leaving the hook in its lowermost position. However, the subsequent downward movement of the griff bar will again move the hook against the respective latch in a manner which will cause movement of the latch to the unlatched position. This enables the hook to be subsequently released from the latch if the latch had been held in the unlatched position by the solenoid. In this manner, the weaving device selectively moves the eyelet by energizing and de-energizing the solenoids at given intervals which controls the movement of the hooks. Often a controller, such as a programmable logic computer, is utilized to control electrical current flow to the solenoids and related motor which propels the individual griff bars.
Commonly, a Jacquard weaving device consists of at least one row of eyelets which are configured as discussed above, with respective springs, pulley blocks, cords, hooks, latches and solenoids for each eyelet. Usually, the entire row of eyelets is served by a single pair of elongated griff bars. In this manner, each individual eyelet in the row may be moved from either the upper position to the lower position, or vice versa, or may remain in either the upper or lower position with each reciprocal stroke of the griff bars. Often, large Jacquard weaving devices consist of several such rows of similarly configured eyelets, each with its own set of griff bars. Thus, by moving the griff bars at repeating intervals, and selectively controlling the energization of the solenoids, the controller can cause any combination of eyelets to either move up or down, or remain in the upper or lower positions, with each shed change.
While Jacquard weaving machines of conventional design have been operated with varying degrees of success, there have been recognized shortcomings which have detracted from their usefulness. For example, a relatively large Jacquard weaving machine may consist of a dozen or more rows of eyelets, each row having up to thirty or more eyelets. Such a machine, having hundreds of individually movable eyelets, will have a complex, tightly packed mechanism comprised of interactive, precision components, including griff bars and related drive trains, hooks, latches, solenoids, cords, guides, and pulley blocks. Thus, a malfunction or failure of a single component in this complex, tightly packed mechanism necessitates a tedious and time-consuming disassembly of the machine in order to simply gain access to the failed or malfunctioning part for removal and replacement. This tedious disassembly process of the machine results in costly down-time of the weaving device, during which the operation of the device is temporarily halted.
Therefore, it has long been known that it would be desirable to provide a Jacquard weaving machine which achieves the benefits to be derived from similar prior art devices, but which avoids the detriments individually associated therefrom.
In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, a weaving device comprises a weaving device frame; a plurality of eyelets movably mounted on the weaving device frame; and a frame module releasably borne by the weaving device frame and readily detachable from the respective eyelets, the frame module controlling the movement of the individual eyelets and forming a readily removable component of the weaving device.
Another aspect of the present invention relates to a frame module for use with a weaving device having a plurality of eyelets. The frame module controls the movement of the respective eyelets. The frame module comprising a frame releasably engageable with the weaving device and further includes a guide plate; a plurality of hooks movable borne by the frame and mounted on the weaving device; a plurality of latches mounted on the guide plate and movable between a latched position and an unlatched position; a plurality of solenoids releasably mounted on the frame, and wherein the respective solenoids facilitate the movement of the respective latches between the latched and unlatched positions.
A griff bar is movable borne on the frame and selectively engageable with respect to the hooks.
A drive member borne by the frame is provided for moving the griff bar selectively along the frame. The frame module forms a readily removable component of the weaving device.
Yet another aspect of the present invention relates to a frame module for use with a weaving device having a plurality of eyelets. The frame module controls movement of the respective eyelets. The frame module includes a weaving device frame and a plurality of biasing members mounted on the weaving device frame. Each of the eyelets is mounted on an individual biasing member. A plurality of first cords individually affixed on one of the eyelets, and which are further connected to the weaving device frame. A plurality of first pulley blocks are individually engageable with the respective first cords, and which are individually movable therewith.
A frame module is releasably mounted on the weaving device frame and further includes a guide plate mounted thereon. The frame module forms a readily removable component of the weaving device.
A plurality of second pulley blocks are releasably connected to each of the first pulley blocks. A plurality of hooks are selectively movable relative to the frame module between first and second positions. A plurality of second cords are mounted on the frame module and coact with the respective hooks. A plurality of latches are mounted on the guide plate and move between a latched position and an unlatched position.
A plurality of removable solenoids are mounted on the frame module, which facilitate movement of the respective latches between the latched and unlatched positions. A griff bar is movably borne on the frame module and is slidable along a reciprocal path of movement and wherein the griff bar to selectively engage the hooks.
A pair of sprockets are mounted on the frame module. A drive member disposed in force transmitting relation between the respective sprockets and the griff bar.
Another aspect of the present invention relates to a frame module for use with a weaving device having a plurality of eyelets. The frame module controls movement of the respective eyelets. The frame module also comprises a weaving device frame having a first end and an opposite second end.
A plurality of biasing members are mounted on the weaving device frame, and wherein each of the eyelets is mounted on an individual biasing member. A plurality of first cords are affixed one to each one of the eyelets, and which are further connected to the weaving device frame. A plurality of first pulley blocks are individually engageable with each of the respective first cords, and which are individually movable therewith. A frame module, releasably mounted on the weaving device frame, has opposite first and second ends, and a pair of spaced sidewalls, and wherein a channel is formed in the sidewalls adjacent to the second end thereof.
A griff track is provided on the spaced sidewalls. A guide plate is mounted between the respective sidewalls. A plurality of second pulley blocks are releasably connected to each of the first pulley blocks. A plurality of hooks are selectively movable relative to the frame module. Each of the hooks has a wheel rotatably mounted thereto, and wherein each of the hooks is selectively movable between first and second positions, and wherein, in the first position, the respective hooks are located near the first end of the frame module, and wherein, in the second position, the hooks are located near the second end of the frame module.
A plurality of second cords each have opposite first and second ends. The opposite ends of each of the second cords are mounted on the frame module. The pulley on each hook coacts with an associated one of the second cords.
A plurality of latches are movably mounted on the guide plate and is movable between a latched position and an unlatched position. Each latch is biased toward the latched position. Each of the hooks engages one of the latches when the hook is located in the second position. A plurality of solenoids are releasably mounted on a supporting substrate that is slidably engageable with the channel, which is formed in the sidewalls of the frame module. The respective solenoids have an energized and a de-energized state to facilitate movement of the respective latches between latched and unlatched positions. In the de-energized state, the respective hooks, upon engaging the individual latches, cause the respective latches to engage the individual hooks. In the energized state, the respective solenoids maintain the individual latches in the unlatched position.
A griff bar is movably borne on the frame module and is slidable along the griff track. The griff bar has a reciprocal path of movement, and is selectively engageable with selected ones of the hooks. When engaged with the hooks, the griff bar reciprocally moves the hooks, which are not held in the second position by the respective latches, from the second position of the hook, to the first position thereof.
First and second pairs of wheels, are rotatably mounted on one of the opposite sidewalls of the frame module. Each of the first and second pairs of wheels has an axis of rotation. The axes of rotation of the first and second pairs of wheels are substantially perpendicular to the sidewalls of the frame module. A drive member is disposed in force transmitting relation between the respective first and second pairs of wheels and the griff bar.
A further aspect of the present invention relates to a frame module for use with a weaving device having a plurality of eyelets, and wherein the frame module controls movement of the respective eyelets. The frame module comprises a weaving device frame have a first end and an opposite second end. A plurality of biasing members have a first and second ends. The first end of each biasing member is mounted on the first end of the weaving device frame. Each of the eyelets is individually mounted on the second end of a respective individual biasing member and is movable with respect to the weaving device frame. The eyelets are biased by the respective biasing members in the direction of the first end of the weaving device frame.
A plurality of first cords have opposite first and second ends, with the first end of each of the cords being affixed to a respective one of the eyelets, and the opposite second end of each of the cords is connected to the weaving device frame. A plurality of first pulley blocks are individually engageable with each of the respective first cords, and are movable with respect to the weaving device frame.
A frame module is detachably mounted on the weaving device frame, and has opposite first and second ends and a pair of spaced sidewalls. A channel is formed in the sidewalls adjacent to the second end thereof. A griff track is provided on the spaced sidewalls. The frame module is readily detachable from the respective eyelets. A plurality of second pulley blocks are releasably connected one to each one of the first pulley blocks. A plurality of hooks are selectively movable relative to the frame module, and each of the hooks has a pulley wheel rotatably mounted thereto. Each of the hooks is selectively movable between a first and second position. In the first position the respective hooks are located near the first end of the frame module, and in the second position, the hooks are located near the second end of the frame module.
A plurality of second cords each having opposite first and second ends are mounted on the frame module. The pulley wheel of each hook is engaged by a respective one of the second cords. A plurality of latches are movably mounted on the guide plate, each latch being movable between a latched position and an unlatched position.
Each latch is biased toward the latched position. Each of the hooks engages an associated one of the latches when the hook is located in the second position, and the latch is located in the latched position. A plurality of solenoids mounted on a supporting substrate that is slidably engageable within the channel which is formed in the sidewalls of the frame module. The respective solenoids have an energized and a de-energized state to facilitate movement of the respective latches between the latched and unlatched positions. In the de-energized state, the respective hooks, upon engaging the individual latches, cause the respective latches to engage the individual hooks. In the energized state, the respective solenoids maintain the individual hooks in the unlatched position.
A griff bar is selectively movably borne on the frame module and is slidable along the griff track. The griff bar has a reciprocal path of movement to selectively engage the hooks. When engaged with the hooks, the griff bar reciprocally moves those hooks which are not held in the second position by the respective latches, from the second position to the first position.
First and second pairs of wheels, are rotatably mounted on the opposite sidewalls of the frame module. A drive member is disposed in force transmitting relation between the respective first and second pairs of wheels and the griff bar.
A still further aspect of the invention relates to a frame module for use with a weaving device having a plurality of eyelets, and wherein the frame module controls movement of the respective eyelets. The frame module comprises a module frame releasably engageable with the weaving device and is mountable to the weaving device. A plurality of hooks are movably borne by the module frame and configured for releasable attachment to the eyelets. A plurality of latches are mounted on the module frame, each being moveable between a latched position and an unlatched position. A plurality of solenoids are releasably mounted on the module frame to facilitate movement of the respective latches between the latched and unlatched positions. A griff bar is movably borne on the module frame and engages selected hooks. The frame module forms a readily removable component of the weaving device.